Christian Dior and the 1947 "New Look" Christian Dior and the 1947 "New Look" Christian Dior and the 1947 "New Look" French designer defined post-World War II fashion and the female silhouette Christian Dior, 1949. Hulton Archive/Getty Images By Jennifer Nicole Sullivan Updated January 30, 2016. Fresh at the helm of Dior, Raf Simons presented his debut spring/summer 2013 ready-to-wear collection with a silhouette from the past, the "New Look," that designer Christian Dior made famous in 1947. The post-World War II hourglass shape exaggerated the female form with its structured bodice, tiny nipped-in waist, and long circle skirts that used several yards of fabric, unlike the slim, fabric-rationed skirts that women wore during wartime. In Simons’s collection, models channeled classic Dior femininity in long voluminous floral skirts and simple black shirts, some long-sleeved and some short-sleeved with an oh-so Parisian black scarf tied around the neck.

These "New Look"-inspired ensembles seemed like a nod of appreciation from Simons to the brand’s original couturier. About Christian Dior Christian Dior was born January 21, 1905, in Granville, France, a town on the coast of Normandy, to a wealthy chemical fertilizer manufacturer. He attended the School of Political Science of the University of Paris with intentions of entering a career in diplomacy. continue reading below our video Jean Styles You Can Wear All Year Around At 23, he became an art dealer instead and was said to have exhibited art by his friends Salvador Dali and Jean Cocteau . During the Great Depression, his family lost much of their wealth, so Dior began illustrating hats for The Figaro Illustrated. His hat designs struck a chord with Parisian women and local milliner Place Vendome, which ordered Dior’s collections. After designing briefly for designer Robert Piguet, Dior served in the French Army as a private first class in the Engineers in World War II. When he returned, Dior designed for Lucien Lelong in 1941.

The House of Dior On December 16, 1946, the House of Dior was born; the same year the French Ministry of Production lifted cloth rations. French cotton millionaire Marcel Boussac backed Dior and his salon. Because Dior reestablished France as the center of the fashion world after World War II, the French Government awarded him the Legion of Honor for his accomplishments. Dior, who always wore conservative suits and ties, was nicknamed "Cri-Cri" by close friends. The hard-working designer reportedly went into seclusion twice a year and sketched new designs while soaking in his bathtub. Maison Dior is still located in its original home at 30 Avenue Montaigne in Paris. Dior's "New Look" Presented in early 1947, Dior’s first collection was titled "Corolle" which means corolla , connected flower petals — an apt name to describe the collection of voluminous skirts that enveloped women like flowers. Coined by Harper’s Bazaar editor-in-chief Carmel Snow, the "New Look" steered completely clear of the austere wartime silhouettes constructed with shorter hemlines due to rationed fabric.

The "New Look" was a return to femininity, even heightened femininity with its structured bustier bodices, nipped-in waists, peplums and full skirts that flared out from the waist and created an exaggerated hourglass figure. Dior later wrote: "We were emerging from the period of war, of uniforms, of women-soldiers built like boxers. I drew women-flowers, soft shoulders, fine waists like liana and wide skirts like corolla." Socialites flocked to Dior’s "New Look" designs, no doubt hungry for beauty, elegance and luxury that World War II had stripped from fashion. Dior’s goal was "to make elegant women more beautiful; to make beautiful women more elegant." Other Dior silhouettes are the H-line or flat look, the Oval, the Tulip, the Zigzag, the Vertical and the Profile.

Coco Chanel once said that Dior "upholstered" women instead of dressing them, according to "Tim Gunn’s Fashion Bible." Christian Dior’s Death On October 23, 1957, just ten years after the "New Look" transformed the fashion world, Dior died at age 52 of a heart attack while on vacation in Montecatini, Italy, at Hotel La Place, according to Dior’s New York Times obituary. Conflicting reports say he died after choking on a fish bone, after playing a card game or even after a sexual encounter, but the actual causes remain unknown. Although his career was short, Dior’s influence on fashion will continue to live on — especially if Dior creative director Raf Simons has a say. The "New Look" Today You don’t have to buy vintage Dior to flaunt the "New Look" today. It’s easy to mix and match vintage and contemporary pieces to achieve this classic silhouette. When shopping at a vintage store, find pieces dated late 1940s through 1950s and follow these tips: Blouse: Select a fitted blouse with a tapered waist and darts that accentuate the bust.

Or try a fitted peplum jacket or structured top with corseted construction. A fitted black cotton T-shirt, as shown in Dior’s spring/summer 2013 collection, modernizes the look. Skirt: To keep it modern, go for a full circle skirt that hits around the knees or at the ankles — a skirt that hits the middle of the calves can be a tricky, sometimes matronly, hemline. Make sure the waistline nips in your mid-section. Shoes: Opt for classic pointed-toe pumps. Accessories: Throw on a black scarf for Parisian oomph or elbow-length gloves for a more formal event. Sources "Dior, 52, Creator of ‘New Look,’ Dies," by The Associated Press, The New York Times, October 24, 1957. "Tim Gunn's Fashion Bible," by Tim Gunn, with Ada Calhoun. New York: Gallery Books, 2012. "The New Look: The Dior Revolution," by Nigel Cawthorne. London: Hamlyn, 1996. "Turning Points: New Look," Voguepedia, Vogue.com.

Marie Trepanier (a Prettier Place): The New Look (1947) The New Look (1947) Christian Dior (F/W 1954) On February 12, 1947, Dior launched his first fashion collection for Spring/Summer 1947 and put an end to the wartime styles that had dominated fashion ever since 1939. The new collection went down in fashion history as the "New Look" after Harpar’s Bazaar editor-in-chief Carmel exclamation, "It's such a New Look!" During World War II, designers and clothes makers had been forced to adjust their styles to wartime cloth restrictions and rationing due to lack of materials; women's clothes were close fitting, with square shoulders and shorter skirts. Though clothing restrictions were still in effect in France, UK and the US in 1947, Dior's New Look collection violated all the rules of wartime fashion: his outfits had rounded shoulders, full skirts and a narrow waist. The dresses were lined with expensive and luxurious fabrics such as cambric or taffeta and were beautifully detailed.

Outfits were accessorized with a hat, often worn to one side, long gloves and simple jewelry. As Dior described it when the clothing line was introduced, the New Look was "symbolic of youth and the future." Jean Dessès (1951) Victor Stiebel (1950) Balenciaga (1955) Dior's New Look clothes created an international sensation. Critics scolded the designer for ignoring the continued rationing and the economic distress of the war years. They complained that manufacturers didn't have enough cloth to make Dior's full skirts and that women didn't have enough money to buy them. One British politician claimed that the longer skirt was the "ridiculous whim of idle people," while protestors in Paris called out, "40,000 francs for a dress and our children have no milk," according to Nigel Cawthorne, author of The New Look: The Dior Revolution. But women and other designers disagreed. The first women to see the designs at Paris fashion shows raved that femininity had returned to women's clothes. Designers imitated Dior's look for their collections and quickly produced ready-to-wear New Look-inspired clothing lines.

(Ready-to-wear refers to clothes that can be bought "off the rack" as opposed to custom designed, tailored clothing.) Jean Dessès (1953) Pierre Balmain (1950) The New Look killed off the utility clothing of the war years and ushered in a new era in fashion. By 1948 the New Look was the dominant fashion in Paris, London and New York. It continued to be popular for several years. Photos from the Albert and Victoria Museum, London Article sources from the Fashion Encyclopedia and Wikipedia The New Look revolution / The story of Dior / The House of Dior / Dior official website The Bar jacket, an icon of the New Look 12 February 1947, an international success This is the story of a quip, which thanks to a magical moment, forged a legend. On 12 February 1947 at 10.30 a.m. Christian Dior, aged 42, presented his first collection at 30 Avenue Montaigne, which was strewn with flowers by Lachaume.

The Editor-in-Chief of Harper's Bazaar, Carmel Snow, strongly believed in the couturier's talent, which she had already noted in 1937 with the Café Anglais model that he designed for Robert Piguet. At the end of the fashion show, having seen those unique silhouettes, those lengths, those volumes, those tiny waists and devilishly sexy busts, she exclaimed, "It's quite a revolution, dear Christian! Your dresses have such a new look!" A correspondent from Reuters seized upon the slogan and quickly wrote it on a note that he threw from the balcony to a courier posted on Avenue Montaigne. The news reached the United States even before the rest of France, where the press had been on strike for a month. The American journalist, who cabled the brilliant slogan to her editor, did not know how right she was. The newness of which she spoke caused shock waves on both sides of the Atlantic. Just two years after the war, Dior, with this collection in his own image, definitively turned the page of restriction, gloom, rationing, gravity and uniforms.

With the utmost seriousness, he wanted to give women back their taste for light-heartedness, the art of seduction: he had known since his childhood that they always kept it hidden somewhere within them, even in the most dramatic of circumstances. He learnt this in Granville during the Second World War, by observing women looking at the Parisian magazines that it was so difficult to get hold of: surprised and excited by the fashionable dresses, they raced to have them made as soon as they closed the magazine. The Bar jacket, an icon of the New Look With his revolutionary New Look, Christian Dior wrote a new chapter in the history of fashion. Furthermore, in order to write it, he literally constructed it with his own hands. The would-be architect had to hammer away at a Stockman mannequin that was too tough and unyielding to bear the preparatory canvases of his visionary wardrobe, says his friend Suzanne Luling: "And so, with big, nervous blows of the hammer, he gave the mannequin the same form of the ideal woman for the fashion that he was to launch." His aim was clear; his hand did not tremble.

"I wanted my dresses to be 'constructed', moulded on the curves of the female body whose contours they would stylise. I accentuated the waist, the volume of the hips, I emphasised the bust. In order to give my designs more hold, I had nearly all the fabrics lined with percale or taffeta, renewing a tradition that had long been abandoned." Thus, on 12 February 1947 at 10.30 a.m., the announcer introduced "numéro un, number one". The first outfit was worn by Marie-Thérèse and opened the show during which the astounded audience saw 90 different creations file past, belonging to two principal lines: En Huit and Corolle. Bettina Ballard, Fashion Editor at Vogue, had returned to New York a few months earlier after 15 years spent covering French fashion from Paris, believing European fashion was heading for a dead end.

But she was a good sport and even she had to bow to the innovative genius of Dior: "We have witnessed a revolution in fashion at the same time as a revolution in the way of showing fashion." The Bar jacket immortalised in the famous photo by Willy Maywald, was a signature piece from this collection with its cream shantung morning coat with rounded tails that closely followed the curves of the bust and its large black pleated skirt that flared out, giving the gait an elegant swing that had never been seen before. It was all cleverly completed by a little black pillar-box hat perched cheekily on the head, gloves and fine slender shoes in complete contrast to the square-toed shoes with wedged heels worn by those who had come to watch the fashion show. One by one, like plucking petals from a daisy, it was possible to pick out the major pieces of this manifesto-collection that demonstrated the style and state of mind of a rigorous and joyful man. There was the Passe-Partout suit in navy-blue wool crepe with its crew-neck jacket, pockets on the chest and the tails and pencil skirt that outlined the irreproachable En Huit line.

The Corolle afternoon dress in black wool fastened with five large buttons on the bust and skirt with aptly-named miraculous pleats. The Jungle sheath dress with a panther motif, the Soirée dress with two layers of superimposed pleats in navy blue taffeta... In short, from Rita Hayworth to the average woman on the street that couture did not normally touch, but who learnt during the post-war period to work miracles with her sewing machine, everyone now wanted to adopt this new look that Christian Dior himself was later to describe as "the return to an ideal of civilised happiness." Not long after the fashion show, Elle magazine printed a photo of Marlene Dietrich's calves, the "most beautiful legs in the world", advising its readers to take a good look because they were never likely to be seen again – the star had just ordered 10 New Look dresses whose hems would now cover her up! Dior became "the most famous Frenchman in the world", according to the headline of the L'Aurore newspaper. A photo showed two women tearing apart the New Look outfit of a third woman in the middle of the street, shocked by the lengths of fabric and ‘indecent’ sensuality.

It was to misunderstand the motivation of Dior who, in designing "flower women with soft shoulders, blossoming bosoms, waists as slender as creepers and skirts as wide as corollas" only wanted to make them happy. Which he succeeded in doing. Over six decades after its creation, the New Look revolution and its spirit continue to inspire Dior. The New Look is a perpetual evolution. Christian Dior's New Look Inside Christian Dior's "New Look" "I wanted my dresses t be constructed, molded upon the curves of the feminine body, whose sweep they would stylize," Christian Dior proclaimed in his autobiography. This concept was the Paris designer's aim when, in the spring of 1947, he launched a new line of women's clothing that stunned and delighted the rest of the fashionable world. "Corelle," Dior dubbed the line of post-war clothing (naming it after the botanical term for the frail petals at the center of a flower), though fashion magazines in Europe and the U.S. quickly and adeptly nicknamed the Dior collection "The New Look." It was Dior's belief that women were fed-up with the uniforms and unadorned clothing of WWII.

A new lady-like charm was being adopted by post war women--who were mimicking screen idols such as Grace Kelly. The New Look took women back to the more simple, traditional days of their great-grandmothers; Vogue described The New Look as being "from the era of Madame Bovary…wasp-waisted Gibson Girl shirtwaists, pleated or tucked…slow-sloped, easy shoulders…wrapped and bound middles--barrel (almost hobble) skirts--longer, deeply shaped shadow-box décolleté-padded hips…" And while Dior's New Look was received with excitement by post-war women, the Look didn't last past Dior's death in 1957--perhaps because the design proved impractical for the growing number of women; however, the look of the 1950s can certainly be looked upon as a less extreme version of Dior's New Look. A Peek Inside If the vintage clothing enthusiast of costumer wishes to re-create The New Look, however, she will be disappointed to discover there no patterns available that re-create a true New Look garment (although, thankfully, the major pattern companies have begun to publish wonderful patterns from the 1950s).

So, unless you're fortunate enough to discover a period New Look pattern in your grandmother's attic, you'll need to rely on your own resources to re-create the Look. The first step toward doing so is uncovering patterns that are as similar as possible to the design you wish to re-create. The most important aspect to look for is basic style lines. For instance, if you want to re-create Dior's famous "Bar" suit, use a circle skirt pattern (not a gored or A-line pattern) as your basis. Once this is done, an experienced seamstress or dressmaker can alter the existing modern pattern. However, to do so, they'll need to know as much as possible about how Dior created those exaggerated hour-glass style lines. Sloping Shoulders The New Look transformed the square shoulders of the war era into more feminine, soft, sloping shoulders, inspired by pre-Civil War fashions. In nearly all Dior designs, this look was achieved by the use of shoulder pads. Today, modern shoulder pads should be home made or re-cut to achieve a sloped look. Sometimes, drop shoulders, like those seen in early Victorian fashions, were also used.

Tiny Waists Once essential ingredient needed for New Look fashions is a corset-though the fashion magazines of the period preferred to call them the more exotic term "guepieres." Dior's own corset (famous for taking inches of the waist) was named "the waspie;" this new version of the Victorian corset was five or six inches deep, made of rigid fabric with elastic inserts, and contained boning and back-lacing. Generally, all corsets of the era were described by fashion magazines as "super-light weight" and were advertised as containing feather boning. Such corsets were worn well cinched at the waist, and were usually worn over a panty- or roll-on girdle. In addition to the use of corsets, Dior frequently lined the waists of his skirts and dresses with feather boning.

For women who could only afford to buy the mass-produced version of The New Look, Vogue suggested the use of a "waist-liner," which was a strip of muslin or seam binding with boning sewn into it, which Vogue said gave "a thin strip of indentation about [the] waist, and could be sewn into each…dress…" Full Hips By themselves, "waspies" and other post-war era corsets added some fullness to the hip area, but Dior didn't rely upon natural plumpness to achieve the full hips his designs called for. All his designs required some sort of added fullness to the hip area--either with padding, or modern farthingales and bustles. Dior's suits contained padding at the hips to achieve an ever more exaggerated hour-glass look. Dior added flounces or peplums (usually made of gathers or tucks) to the back of all his suit tops.

Further, nearly all his skirts had built in back flounces (similar to the smaller built-in bustles of the Victorian era); these were usually pieces of taffeta, organza, or some other stuff fabric gathered tightly at one end and sewn to the center back of the skirt at the waist. Separate bustle or farthingale-like garments could also be worn to further enhance the figure. These were also made of stiff material and gathered tightly, although they were often made of several layers and were worn all around the waist-not just at the back. Such garments were frequently sewn to a fabric belt and buttoned at the waist. Full Busts The "waspie" and other New Look corsets also accentuated the bust somewhat, but most women wearing The Look also used push-up bras to help fill out their bust line. Some of these newly invented push-up bras also contained rubber padding. Women who needed further help were told by fashion magazines to sew a taffeta or acetate ruffle to the bust line of their bra.

Full Skirts The number one item Dior used to make his long (twelve inches or less from the ground) skirts stand full was another borrowed Victorian item: The New Look petticoat, reminiscent of early Victorian petticoats. Most New Look petticoats were made of stuff nylon, taffeta, or horsehair net. Most often they had a fitted hip yolk leading to several smooth layers of netting that ended with a few ruffles. In order to avoid snags in nylon stockings, Dior ingeniously softened the bottom ruffles of his petticoats with eyelet. Some New Look petticoats copied Victorian fashion even further by the addition of hoops-but this practice never gained much popularity since the hoops had an annoying way of tilting--revealing a little more than their Victorian counterparts because of shorter skirt lengths. New Look fashion followers also favored petticoats in brightly colored shades (especially red and green) just like their Victorian ancestors. True Dior designs were also marked with incredible built-in support--which spin-offs never were able to achieve. Dior's full skirts were interlined with stiffened muslin and lined with taffeta or acetate.

In addition, his skirt hems were lined with stiffened muslin or calico (usually brightly colored in case a flip of the skirt revealed the lining) in order to hold out the hem. A new product called Pellon (now a popular home-sewer's interfacing) was also sometimes sewn in to hold skirts out. If Dior's skirts and dresses were not full, they were nearly skin-tight. New Look jackets, tightly fitted to the figure, were lined with acetate and muslin to help stiffen and support the outer fashion fabric. Dior's right, long skirts were given strong linings in order to ward off "seating." Mass-produced skirts were usually sold without linings and therefore women wore straight, firm underskirts made of taffeta or acetate under them. In addition, right skirts were frequently made with back walking slits or had pleats or gathers at the back in order to make walking easier. Evening Dresses Evening dresses were generally built in the same manner day clothes were; however, the new strapless evening gown required extra support.

"Merry Widows" first appeared in The New Look era and were helpful in pushing up the bust and trimming down the waist, but many of Dior's gowns contained built-in feather boning to hold strapless gowns up. If re-created accurately, New Look garments should nearly stand up by themselves; the interlining, linings, interfacings, bonings, and stiffenings Dior used all but supported his garments on their own. Of course, not every woman was fortunate enough to won and wear true Dior clothing. Mass-produced items (which contained less foundation and support) were worn by most women of the post-war era. Unfortunately, neither original Dior designs or spin offs are easily found in vintage clothing shops and shows today. It's a rare treat to find a New Look garment in an auction, and when they are found, collectors generally pay $4,000 and up for Dior's early creations. While regular Christie's and Sotheby's buyers may be able to fit such purchases into their budgets, most of us will have to settle for the next best thing: A new Look "look alike garment." speakfashion.us Fashion History Classics: Who invented the “New Look”?

Fashion History Classics: Who invented the “New Look”? “I wanted my dresses be constructed, molded upon the curves of the feminine body, whose sweep they would stylize,” French fashion designer Christian Dior pointed out in his autobiography. Indeed, in the spring of 1947 this was Dior’s concept when he launched his incredible new women’s line collection “Corelle” which went down in fashion history as the “ New Look ”. The signature shape was characterized by a below-mid-calf length, sloping shoulders, full-skirts, full busts, full hips and tiny waists. It was Dior’s belief that women wanted something new after World War II after brutality and being mobilized during the war to work on farms and in factories while the men were away fighting. The French designer was convinced his “New Look” was absolutely appropriate for the post-war era. Women were expected to return to passive roles again as housewives and mothers, and leaving their jobs free for the returning soldiers.

The good-humored, caring housewife who created a happy home for her husband and children, the so-called Dior’s “flower women” matched perfectly his “New Look”, that remembered a lot of the Belle Époque from the early 1900s . The “New Look” became extremely popular and revolutionary which influenced fashion for many years to come. The European upper-class and prominences became Dior’s loyal clients and the once capital of the fashion world – Paris regained its esteemed position due to the attention it gained from Dior’s New Look. Watch the video from 1947 below to get an idea how beautiful Dior’s “New Look” dress looked like. Related Articles: Christian Dior - Design Museum Christian Dior Posted January 21, 2016 -- Updated October 18 Despite a short career, Christian Dior dominated the world of fashion during the late 1940s and 1950s, with the hourglass silhouette of his voluptuous New Look.

Share Christian Dior One of the most influential fashion designers of the late 1940s and 1950s, Christian Dior (1905 to 1957) despite a short career dominated the world of fashion after World War II with the hourglass silhouette of his voluptuous New Look. He also defined a new business model in the post-war fashion industry by establishing Dior as a global brand across a wide range of products. Early Years Christian Dior was born on 21 January 1905 in Granville, a lively seaside town on the Normandy coast, in France. He was the second of the five children of Alexandre Louis Maurice Dior, the latest heir in an established family business of fertiliser manufacturers, and his wife Isabelle. The family lived in a pretty grey and pink house perched high on a cliff with spectacular views over the sea. They moved to Paris in 1910 returning to Granville for holidays each summer.

Dior longed to become an architect but, at his father’s insistence, he enrolled at the prestigious École des Sciences Politiques (nicknamed ‘Sciences Po’), in Paris to take a degree in politics which, his parents hoped, would prepare him for a diplomatic career. All Dior wanted, however, was to work in the arts. In 1928, his father gave him enough money to open an art gallery on condition that the family name would not appear above the door. Galerie Jacques Bonjean, which Dior opened with Bonjean, soon became an avant-garde haunt with paintings by Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Jean Cocteau and Max Jacob hanging on walls decorated by Christian Bérard. Disaster struck in 1931 when the death of Dior’s older brother was followed by that of his mother and the collapse of the family firm. The gallery closed. For the next few years Dior scraped a living by selling fashion sketches to haute couture houses. Finally he found a job as an assistant to the couturier, Robert Piquet.

World War II Dior continued to work for Piquet until he was called up to the Army following the start of World War II. He served for a year, before being demobilised after France’s surrender. Once out of the military he joined his father and a sister on a farm in Provence. To make a living in this period, Dior first worked in the farm and then, inspired and with the help of various friends, he sold sketches to couture houses, milliners and magazines until he was offered a job in Paris at Lucien Lelong. Like other French couturiers during the War, Lelong took on as clients the wives of Nazi officers and French collaborators as a way to survive the conflict. Despite all efforts, France emerged from World War II in ruins. Half a million buildings were destroyed. Clothes, coal and food were in short supply. Yet there were ample opportunities for new business ventures and fashion was no exception. Creating the House of Dior Through George Vigouroux, a childhood friend from Granville, Dior was offered to become the artistic director at the house of Philippe et Gaston.

This was a struggling clothing company owned by Marcel Boussac, then known as the‘King of Cotton’, a businessman with an empire of racing stables, newspapers, and textile mills. Surprisingly, instead of accepting Boussac’s offer, Dior proposed a different plan. He suggested that Bousacc should help him open his own fashion house: an establishment ‘where everything would be new, from the state of mind and the staff to the furniture and premises’. Boussac agreed to launch the new couture house in style with a then-unprecedented budget of 50 million. Jacques Rouët, a young civil servant, was appointed as its administrator. The house of Dior and its 85 employees moved into a modest mansion at 30 Avenue Montaigne which was decorated in Dior’s favourite colours of white and grey. The First Show and the New Look The first Christian Dior couture show was scheduled for 12 February 1947. At that time clothes were still scarce and the Paris couture trade, which had dominated international fashion since the late 18th century, was in a precarious state.

What was needed was excitement and Christian Dior delivered it in a collection of luxurious and feminine clothes with soft shoulders, waspy waists, rounded hips, and full flowing skirts, intended for what he called the ‘flower women’. Dior’s propositions famously impressed the audience. ‘It’s quite a revelation dear Christian’, pronounced Carmel Snow, the editor of American magazine Harper’s Bazaar. ‘Your dresses have such a new look’. That phrase famously came to identify Dior’s first collection and the ‘New Look’ designs resonated with the clients’ sensibilities during the grim post-war era. Dior foresaw that women might appreciate something new after years of conflict, brutality, hardship, and clothing restrictions. Despite initial resistance to skirts’ lengths and the incredible amount of fabric that was required to make a New Look garment (between 15 and 25 meters), these designs became a sensation. Among this first collection titled ‘Corolle’, was the iconic ‘Bar suit’ which became one of the most popular designs of the line. Dior’s couture house was inundated with orders. Rita Hayworth picked out an evening gown for the première of her new movie, Gilda.

The ballerina, Margot Fonteyn, bought a suit. Starting with his first collection Dior helped to put Paris back on the fashion map. The US couture clients came back in force for the autumn 1947 collections. Dior was also invited to stage a private presentation of that season’s show for the British Royal Family in London, although King George VI forbade the young princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret, from wearing the New Look lest it set a bad example at a time when rationing was still in force for the general public. Constructing and Expanding the Brand Behind the scenes Jacques Rouët helped manage and built up the Dior business. The traditional Paris couture houses were small operations making bespoke clothes for private clients. Some couturiers had diversified into other products: notably Chanel and Jean Patou into perfume, and Elsa Schiaparelli into hosiery. Both Boussac and Rouët realised that a lucrative move forward would be for the House of Dior to diversify further afield into more products and international markets.

Eager to capitalise on the publicity generated by the New Look, they opened a luxury ready-to-wear boutique on New York’s Fifth Avenue, and another branch dedicated to selling furs on Avenue Montaigne. When a US hosiery company offered the House of Dior the then-enormous fee of $10,000 for the rights to manufacture their stockings, the foot of which was designed by Dior himself, the couturier proposed waiving the fee in favour of a percentage of the product’s sales, thereby introducing the royalty payment system to fashion. Remarkably Dior had soon reached his dream of being able to fully dress a woman, even providing undergarments. In this respect Dior even launched a perfume, named ‘Miss Dior’, allegedly a tribute to his sister Catherine who had survived the Ravensbrück concentration camp. The only item Christian Dior did not design himself were shoes, for which he eventually turned to Roger Vivier. The newly wealthy Dior bought and converted the Moulin du Couder at Milly-la-Forêt, near Fontainebleau outside Paris where he could indulge his love of art, antiques and gardening.

Shortly thereafter he also bought a small house on Boulevard Jules Sandeau in Passy. Still shy, he left socialising to Suzanne Luling, his vivacious and talented sales director, and he grew even more superstitious with age. Every collection included a coat called the ‘Granville’, named after his birthplace, and at least one model wore a bunch of his favourite flower, lily of the valley. Moreover Dior never began a couture show without having consulted his tarot card reader. Throughout the 1950s Christian Dior was one of the more successful haute couture houses in Paris. Although there were other fashion designers that rivalled Dior, among which were Pierre Balmain, and Cristóbal Balenciaga, neither of these designers could count on the strategic support system and structure available to Dior As well as Jacques Rouët and Suzanne Luling mentioned above, Dior had the ‘three muses’ who worked with him on the collections: Raymonde Zehnacker who managed the studio; Marguerite Carré, head of the workrooms; and Germaine Bricard, the glamorous hat designer. The house was run along rigidly hierarchical lines.

Each of the vendeuses (sales assistants), had their own clients with whom they were expected to nurture friendly relationships. The ateliers, or workrooms, were staffed by seamstresses, many of whom had worked there since leaving school. During the twice-yearly haute couture shows in late January and early August, some 2,500 people filed in and out of the Dior salons to see the new collections. Each show included up to two hundred outfits and lasted as long as two and a half hours. The models, or ‘mannequins’ as they were then called, came from the same privileged backgrounds as the clients and were hired in different shapes and sizes to show how the clothes would look on different women. The biggest clients were North American: Hollywood stars, New York socialites and department store buyers who bought the exclusive rights to individual designs to be made up by their own seamstresses. Marshall Fields, the Chicago store, had nine couture workshops and a marble-lined salon, ‘The 28th Shop’.

Discount clothing chains, like Ohrbach, were allowed to attend the shows on condition that they bought a minimum number of outfits, which they were then allowed to copy stitch for stitch into ‘knock-off’ lines. As a prestigious Paris couture house, over the years Dior also attracted talents. One was Pierre Cardin, an Italian-born tailor who was head of department at Dior in the late 1940s before leaving to begin his own business. Another was Yves Saint Laurent, a gifted young Algeria-born designer who joined in 1955 as the star graduate of the Chambre Syndicale Fashion School to become Dior’s first ever assistant. As timid as Dior himself, the young Saint Laurent flourished at the couture house and contributed a remarkable thirty-five outfits for the autumn 1957 collection. When all the fittings for the collection were finished, Dior took off for a rest cure at his favourite spa town of Montecatini, in Italy, some say hoping to lose weight in order to impress a young lover. Adieu Dior Ten days later, on 24 October, Dior, only 52 years old, died while still on his vacation in Italy.

(The cause of death has attracted many speculations. Some say the couturier had died after suffering three heart attacks, but others sustain he had choked on a fish bone at dinner, while others yet point to a ‘strenuous sexual encounter’ as cause of death.) . News of Dior’s death sparked many reactions. For example the French newspaper Le Monde hailed him as a man who was ‘identified with good taste, the art of living and refined culture that epitomises Paris to the outside world’. Marcel Boussac sent his private plane to Montecatini to bring Dior’s body back to Paris. Some 2,500 people attended his funeral including all his staff and famous clients led by the Duchess of Windsor. A fortnight later Jacques Rouët called a press conference to announce the new structure of the house of Christian Dior. ‘The studio will be run by Madame Zehnmacker, the couture workshops by Madame Marguerite Carré’, he announced. ‘Mitza Bricard will continue to exercise her good taste over the collections.

All the sketches will be the responsibility of Yves Mathieu-Saint-Laurent.’ The House of Dior After Dior The first Dior collection after Christian Dior’s death was a sensation. Designed in just nine weeks by the 21 year-old Yves Saint Laurent—as he was called after dropping his middle name ‘Mathieu’—the clothes were as meticulously made and perfectly proportioned as Dior’s in the same exquisite fabrics, but their young designer made them softer, lighter and easier to wear. Saint Laurent was hailed as a national hero. Emboldened by his success, his designs became more daring culminating in the 1960 Beat Look inspired by the existentialists in the Saint-Germain des Près cafés and jazz clubs. Marcel Boussac was furious and, in spring 1960, when Saint Laurent was called up to join the French army, the Dior management raised no objection. Saint Laurent was conscripted in the army and, after demobilisation, he opened his own couture house.

He was replaced at Dior, in 1961, by Marc Bohan, who instilled his conservative style on the collections until 1989 when Gianfranco Ferré became the new artistic director. Ferré remained at Dior until 1996, and then the iconoclastic John Galliano, was appointed chief designer of Christian Dior by the company’s new owner, the LVMH luxury goods group. Recent Years Galliano worked at Dior for 15 years (between 1996 and 2011), before being fired from the company due to a public anti-Semitic incident. Dior’s designer Bill Gaytten oversaw the collections at the fashion house as a new creative director was being appointed. In April 2012 Raf Simons, a Belgian furniture designer who in 1995 turned fashion designer by launching his menswear collection, was announced as Dior’s new Creative Director. Despite having produced successful collections for Dior, in October 2015 Simons stepped away from his engagement with the Parisian fashion house.

In July 2016, eight months after Simons' departure, Italian fashion designer Maria Grazia Chiuri was announced new Creative Director becoming the first woman to design womenswear for Dior. New Look - Fashion, Costume, and Culture: Clothing, Headwear, Body Decorations, and Footwear through the Ages New Look - Fashion, Costume, and Culture: Clothing, Headwear, Body Decorations, and Footwear through the Ages New Look The New Look clothing designs for women that emerged from the studio of French designer Christian Dior (1905–1957) in 1947 put an end to the wartime styles that had dominated fashion ever since 1939. During World War II (1939-1945) designers and clothes makers had been forced to adjust their styles to wartime cloth restrictions and rationing due to lack of materials; women's clothes were close fitting, with square shoulders and short skirts. Though clothing restrictions were still in effect in France, Great Britain, and the United States in 1947, Dior's New Look collection violated all the rules of wartime fashion: his outfits had rounded shoulders; full, billowing skirts; and a narrow waist.

The dresses were lined with expensive and luxurious fabrics such as cambric or taffeta and were beautifully detailed. Outfits were accessorized with a hat, often worn to one side, long gloves, and simple jewelry. As Valerie Steele wrote in Fifty Years of Fashion: New Look to Now : "The longing for elegance and luxury had been suppressed for the years of the war, and the New Look promised to gratify it." As Dior described it when the clothing line was introduced, the New Look was "symbolic of youth and the future." Designer Christian Dior, creator of the New Look, showing off the raised hemline of one of his designer skirts. Reproduced by permission of © . Dior had entered the fashion industry in 1938 as a designer with the French house of Robert Piguet. In 1942 he joined the house of Lucien Lelong, where he learned a great deal about dressmaking. In 1946, with the financial support of textile manufacturer Marcel Boussac, Dior launched his own design house.

The New Look designs were Dior's first collection, and in the following years Dior became one of the world leaders in haute couture, exclusive and trendsetting high fashion design. He introduced several other notable women's fashion styles, including the H-line of 1954, the Y-line of 1955, and the A-line of 1956, all named for the silhouette the design gave to women. Perhaps even more notably, Dior's house set the tone for the modern fashion house by branching out to design and license a whole line of fashion accessories and perfumes for women as well as ties for men. Though Christian Dior died suddenly in 1957, his vast fashion company still exists today. Dior's New Look clothes created an international sensation. Critics scolded the designer for ignoring the continued rationing and the economic distress of the war years. They complained that manufacturers didn't have enough cloth to make Dior's full skirts and that women didn't have enough money to buy them.

One British politician claimed that the longer skirt was the "ridiculous whim of idle people," while protestors in Paris called out, "40,000 francs for a dress and our children have no milk," according to Nigel Cawthorne, author of The New Look: The Dior Revolution. But women and other designers disagreed. The first women to see the designs at Paris fashion shows raved that femininity had returned to women's clothes. Designers imitated Dior's look for their collections and quickly produced ready-to-wear New Look-inspired clothing lines. (Ready-to-wear refers to clothes that can be bought "off the rack" as opposed to custom designed, tailored clothing.) The New Look killed off the utility clothing of the war years and ushered in a new era in fashion. By 1948 the New Look was the dominant fashion in Paris, France; London, England; and New York, and it continued to be popular for several years. FOR MORE INFORMATION Cawthorne, Nigel. The New Look: The Dior Revolution. London, England: Reed Consumer Books, 1996. Ewing, Elizabeth. History of Twentieth Century Fashion. Revised by Alice Mackrell.

Lanham, MD: Barnes and Noble Books, 1992. Steele, Valerie. Fifty Years of Fashion: New Look to Now. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1997. Christian Dior’s ‘New Look’ of the 1940s and 1950s | Lady JoJo's Christian Dior’s ‘New Look’ of the 1940s and 1950s Posted on July 13, 2011 by Lady JoJo's Boutique Recently I have been particularly taken with ‘The New Look’, which was the major shift in post-war fashion in the late forties. I find this style particularly interesting as you can really see the beginning of the 1950s shapes which are so popular today. The New Look is the brainchild of the ever fabulous Christian Dior and was part of a post-war attempt to revive France’s internationally acclaimed fashion industry. The collection was launched in 1947 and was actually Dior’s first. He had been invited by a friend, Marcel Boussac, to breathe new life into his struggling clothing company.

Boussac also had investments in textile mills so Dior’s vision of billowing skirts and excess use of fabric appealed to him. Boussac invested an unprecedented 60million Francs in launching Dior’s couture house which went on to be one of, if not the, biggest influence on post-war fashion. This 1947 spring/summer collection was originally made up of two lines, ‘Corolle’ and ‘Huit’ however the term ‘New Look’ is said to have came about after Harper’s Bazaar’s editor-in-chief, Carmel Snow, exclaimed “It’s such a new look!”. The signature style was made up of certain key elements; full-skirts, waspy waists and soft shoulders. After wartime rationing the yards and yards of fabric used in the designs was a refreshing change. As we all know, after the war women were encouraged to become homemakers once again, moving out of the workplace, and therefore the feminine, flowery and certainly impractical nature of this fashion was positively encouraged in Western countries. This Bar Suit is one of the iconic images from the collection as it encompasses the central themes of the style.

The suit delicately displays the feminine body however the tailored jacket adds just the perfect touch of structure to the overall look. During this period, there was still a slightly sombre tone as the Western world tried to re-build itself economically and the New Look accounts for this as it has a mature feel, attempting to avoid frivolity and girlishness which may have been criticised as poor taste. For example King George V, of British royalty, forbade his daughters from wearing the look as rationing was still prominent in some areas. Although Dior used a slightly masculine edge, as it was popular in the 1940s, he wanted to veer away from this and encourage women to embrace more feminine styles again – he was particularly fond of the 1930s version of femininity in fashion. He claimed that he wanted ‘to bring back beauty, feminine clothing, soft rounded shapes and full flowing skirts’. Above, we can see a couple of examples from this collection which incorporates softer touches such as the ruffling at the collar of the jacket. The white dress puts emphasis on the bust and hips, another trademark of this collection which enhances the hourglass form beyond the mere nipping in of waists.

After his initial 1947 collection, Dior became much more extreme in his designs as rationing and the war became a distant memory he used fabric in excess and his styles oozed opulence. He put particular emphasis on further highlighting the waspy waist by excess layering of materials so as the exaggerate the hourglass curves. He also used in-built padding around the hip and shoulder areas to create the silhouette. Dior particularly loved to be flamboyant when it came to his evening dresses where he could really experiment with mass quantities of fabric. He was particularly fond of strapless evening dresses and used built-in feather boning to hold the dresses up which was a feat of engineering in itself as they were rather on the large side. Tulle was often the fabric of choice for his evening wear skirts as it naturally creates light-weight volume. These two dresses are examples from his 1949 collections. The New Look really did change fashion at the time and its influences are still prominent today. Even within this year’s designer collections, the basic principles of the iconic Bar Suit can clearly be seen on some catwalks – even Christian Dior’s!

The striking silhouette of tiny waists with emphasis on the hourglass curves creating an almost caricature body shape has had a recent resurgence in popularity. Junya Watanabe RTW FW11 Christian Dior (1905–1957) | Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art Works of Art (18) Essay Christian Dior’s reputation as one of the most important couturiers of the twentieth century was launched in 1947 with his very first collection, in which he introduced the “New Look.” Featuring rounded shoulders, a cinched waist, and very full skirt, the New Look celebrated ultra-femininity and opulence in women’s fashion. After years of military and civilian uniforms, sartorial restrictions and shortages, Dior offered not merely a new look but a new outlook. Born and raised in Normandy, France, Dior moved with his parents to Paris when he was ten. After studying political science, he served in the military. His design career did not begin until 1935, when he returned to Paris and began selling sketches. The designer Robert Piguet hired him in 1938.

During World War II, Dior served in the south of France, then returned again to Paris in 1941 and worked for Lucien Lelong at a much larger design house. In 1946, backed by textile manufacturer Marcel Boussac, he opened his own house. Dior helped to restore a beleaguered postwar Paris as the capital of fashion. Each of his collections throughout this period had a theme. Spring 1947 was “Carolle” or “figure 8,” a name that suggested the silhouette of the new look with its prominent shoulders, accentuated hips, and small waist. The spring 1953 collection, dubbed “Tulip,” featured an abundance of floaty, flowery prints. Spring 1955’s “A-line,” with its undefined waist and smooth silhouette that widened over the hips and legs, resembled a capital “A.” Some of Dior’s designs simulated Second Empire and other historical styles, but he was also creating menswear, trompe-l’oeil detailing, and soft-to-hard juxtapositions, making them part of the modern wardrobe.

By his final collections, Dior, feeling the need for a more limber silhouette and lifestyle, was designing chemises, narrow tunics, and sari-like wraps. Together with his partner Jacques Rouet, Dior pioneered license agreements in the fashion business. By 1948, he had arranged lucrative licensing deals for fur, stockings, and perfumes, which not only generated revenue but also made him a household name. While the House of Dior is still a thriving business today, Dior’s untimely death in 1957 left the fashion world without a great dictator of style. Christian Dior designed under his own name for only a decade, but his influence will be felt for many years to come. Beth Duncuff Charleston Fashions of the 1950's: The "New Look" Dior's 1947 Collection Begins the Revolution The war was over, the boys were home, the restrictions were lifted, and the economy was reviving. It was time. In February 1947, Christian Dior introduced the first major postwar collection, called the "Carolle Line" (16), but soon dubbed the "New Look" by American journalists in Life Magazine.

Dior, along with every moderately fashion-conscious female of the times, was long wearied of the harsh Utility style clothes and their masculine quality. With his lavishly soft, purposefully elegant line, Dior did away with wartime fashions and began the flood of radical changes that were to follow. In a single movement he created one of the most distinct looks of the century. What was the "New Look?" The "New Look" is most recognizable by its curvy shape and line, a far cry from its immediate predecessors. The desired look was a womanly hourglass figure, with a tiny waist, full hips, and a plentiful bust. Shoulders were no longer squared, but rounded and natural. Jackets were pinched in at the waist, and dresses had darts to accommodate the fabric increase from small waist to large chest and hips. Skirts were mid calf and full, flowing with layers of nylon petticoats. The freedom and grandeur of the skirts gave both a glamorous feeling and appearance. Variations on skirt line and length emerged as the decade progressed, and encompassed a great variety of styles. Women were adorned with hats, gloves, shoes, and purses; all the accessories to match.

One of his more famous designs in the New Look line was "The Bar," pictured below (16) The idea was to be an image, have a presence, and simply glow with feminine elegance and beauty. What made it so appealing? Aesthetic sensibilities inevitably must take a backseat in times of crisis. So of course women found the wartime styles oppressive, restricting both their stylistic tastes and feminine inclinations. The New Look quickly became an iconographic symbol of youth and beauty, as well as a herald for a hopeful and promising future. Without the constant economical oppressions of war, the American public was learning the beautiful art of spending money on themselves. The overtones of frivolity in Dior's and many others' styles became socially accepted, even if not publicly acknowledged. Dior himself was quoted in saying, "Novelty is the very essence of the fashion trade." (1, p. 40) The Trickle-Down Effect Obviously, not every woman of the fifties could glide around in a brand-new formal Dior ball gown. This was particularly true in America, where the haute couture styles found on the streets of Paris had never been physically tangible.

Despite the obvious price barriers, (Dior's gowns ranged from $300-$2400), they were clearly of little practical use in everyday life. For evening and formal affairs, a Dior would be totally acceptable; as would a comparable copy. Dior's designs were a conception, a model, an ideal to be strived for and sought after. He must be given credit for the vision of feminine grace and elegance that the majority of fifties styles came to strive for. But what about the average American housewife? Sears Catalogues from the era are an authentic indication of everyday style. The trickle-down effect of Dior's New Look style is distinct and marked all the way through the end of the decade. The most common adaptation was the shirtwaist dress, which showed the desired hourglass shape, but was more practical than formalwear. Advertisement for classic shirtwaist dress (9, p. 8)

Question: Who created the "New Look" in 1947?
Answer: (Christian) DIOR